Hello LSC.
Please join local partners for a kick-off meeting that describes how you can participate in local water quality planning.
This virtual meeting is taking place on Wednesday, April 20th from 5:30 - 6:30.
Angie Allen, a watershed planner with the state of Vermont’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), is presenting information about ongoing efforts and opportunities to participate in the basin planning process. Angie works in several watersheds in southern Vermont, but is focusing her talk on Basin 2 (Poultney Mettowee) and Basin 4 (tributaries that drain directly to South Lake Champlain). Basin 2 also contains Lake St Catherine, Lake Bomoseen, Lake Hortonia, Lake Beebe, Echo Lake, Sunrise and Sunset Lakes, Glenn Lake, and Burr Pond.
From the DEC's Tactical Basin Planning StoryMap website, a tactical basin plan is:
"Tactical Basin Plans (TBP) are strategic guidebooks for achieving watershed health. They identify surface waters that are in need of restoration and protection and outline a list of actions to achieve water quality goals. The plans also identify the partners and funding critical to implementing the actions."
The basin planning process includes 5 major steps:
- Monitoring water quality
- Assessing and analyzing water quality data
- Identifying strategies and projects to protect and restore waters
- Seeking public comment and developing the plan
- Implementing and tracking plan priorities (which is ongoing throughout the planning cycle)
The last South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan was published in 2017 (you can view that here). Angie will be reviewing the action items in the 2017 plan to see if they were completed and if they were successful. As part of this process, she will update the 2022 plan with new water quality goals and tasks for landowners, residents, associations, and local partners to implement.
The purpose of this kick-off meeting is to report on the status of surface waters in the watershed, share the overall planning timeline, and describe ways you can contribute and participate. In addition, there will be State program staff as well as Poultney Mettowee Natural Resources Conservation District (PMNRCD) and Rutland Regional Planning Commission (RRPC) staff online during the meeting to allow for a well-rounded discussion and to help answer questions.
The Lake St. Catherine Association administers and partners on many effective water quality programs for the Lake St. Catherine watershed including: outreach and education on lake issues, water testing, Lake Wise, the LSC Stormwater Master Plan, Milfoil Control, Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Prevention, and the upcoming Lake St. Catherine Watershed Action Plan.
As a shoreline homeowner, or someone who cares about Lake St. Catherine, your participation in this meeting is very much appreciated!
So, please join us on Wednesday, April 20th from 5:30 - 6:30 PM for this virtual meeting hosted via Microsoft Teams. Please feel free to share this link with others!
Meeting link: Southern Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Planning Meeting
